Uses For Acetone

Uses for
Acetone
April 15th, 2008
Authors:
Neal Behrend
Brian Mahoney
Iryney Makarukha
Sunil Subramanian
Advisor:
Professor Raymond Gorte
Project Originator:
Bruce Vrana
Senior Design, Uses for Acetone
Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian
A) Abstract:
The goal of this project is to develop a process for utilizing 164,800 metric tons
per year of acetone produced as a by-product in the synthesis of n-butanol. The potential
of various products were considered, but conversion to polymer-grade propylene was
determined to be the best option based on market-share considerations.
The designed process involves hydrogenation of the acetone to isopropanol over a
nickel/silica catalyst, then dehydration of the alcohol to propylene over a -alumina
catalyst. Approximately 106,815 metric tons of polymer grade propylene are produced
annually.
To determine the economics of the process, it was assumed that the acetone was
received for its fuel value, which would be worth $807,300 assuming a price of $8/106
BTU. The process to produce propylene is expected to yield annual profits of
$28,623,000, assuming a price of $0.49/lb propylene. The total capital investment of this
process is $53,315,000. The NPV of this project is $93,830,000 with an IRR of 21.9%.
-1-
B)
Introduction:
Motivation for Design: ABE Technologies has recently built a plant to produce nbutanol for fuel purposes. This plant will result in an estimated by-product of 164,800
metric tons of acetone per year. The cost of acetone is assumed to be at the fuel value of
$8/106 BTU, or $0.106/lb of acetone. Because this large amount of acetone corresponds
to 2.6% of the world acetone market, it is expected that the price of acetone will decrease
if this supply is sold (ICIS). There exist several possible options of making use of this
acetone; however, converting the acetone to propylene was the most profitable route
considered.
Acetone Overview: Acetone (C3H6O), also known as 2-Propanone, is a colorless and

flammable liquid that is soluble in water and ethanol, and reacts explosively in strong
oxidizing agents. Acetone is primarily used for the formation of methyl methacrylate and
bisphenol-A. Methyl methacrylate is usually polymerized to make homopolymers and
copolymers, and bisphenol-A is used in the polycarbonate sector.
Propylene Overview: Propylene (C3H6), also known as propene, is a colorless and

highly flammable gas at room temperature and pressure. Propylene is mostly used to
make polypropylene, which is a versatile bulk polymer with a wide range of applications.
Some other propylene derivatives include propylene oxide, acrylic acid, acrylonitrile, and
cumene. Propylene oxide is used primarily in producing propylene glycol and in the
urethanes industry. Acrylic acid can be used to produce esters and resins required for
-2-
paints, coatings, and other adhesive applications. Acrylonitrile is used in variety of

elastomeric polymers and fiber applications. Consequently, there exists a wide variety of
uses for propylene, which is reflected in the large market size for this compound.
Methods of Production: An effective way to convert acetone into propylene is to first

hydrogenate the acetone to form an isopropyl alcohol, and then dehydrate the isopropanol
to get propylene and water.
A patent by Fukuhara (European Patent # 6878851) describes a process for
hydrogenating acetone to form isopropanol in a multi-tubular reactor. The chemical
reaction that occurs is:
CH3COCH3 (l) + H2 (g) C3H8O (l)
(1)
According to the patent, isopropanol is prepared through catalytic hydrogenation of

acetone by feeding hydrogen gas and acetone liquid into a reactor having a fixed catalyst
bed from its top to form a gas/liquid downflow while maintaining the catalyst bed in a
trickle bed state (Patent # 6878851). Advantages of this patented process include a
production of isopropanol at a high reaction rate in high yields. Other factors taken into
consideration were that this process involves moderate temperatures and pressures,
ensuring reasonable utility costs. Preferable temperature and pressure ranges are 35150C and 2-50 kg/cm2 respectively.
A second patent by Fukuhara et al illustrates a process to convert isopropanol into
propylene (US Patent # 5227563). This reaction is represented as:
C3H8O (g) C3H6 (g) + H2O (g)
(2)
-3-
The patent reveals a process to prepare propylene in high yield and selectivity by
dehydrating isopropanol in the presence of a -alumina catalyst. Advantages to using the
process described in this patent include a high propylene yield, a catalyst that will not
corrode the reactor, and lower temperatures than required in conventional processes.
Alternate patents that utilize the presence of strong acids to dehydrate alcohols use
catalysts that are corrosive, resulting in the reactor being built with corrosive-resistant
material. This gaseous phase reaction can occur at a range of temperatures of which
290C was chosen because it results in a propylene gas product with a purity of 99.5%.
Polymer grade propylene requires a purity of 99.8%, with less than 1 ppm of water
present, so the purification of this propylene product is required (TEPPCO).
In order to appropriately account for side-reactions, the isopropanol product from
Reaction (1) needs to be vigorously purified. Unfortunately, acetone cannot be separated
from a mixture of isopropanol and water due to their closeness in boiling points. In order
to separate an isopropanol/acetone/water mixture, a third patent was used. This patent by
Berg suggests that an extractive agent such as 1-nitropropane can be used to increase the
relative volatility of the components and make the distillation process more effective
(Patent # 5897750). This compound is also stable and can be recycled, making it an ideal
candidate as an extractive agent for this separation.
-4-
Competitive Landscape: The global demand of acetone is projected to be 6,230,000

metric tons in 2009 (Table B1). While the market price of acetone is approximately
$0.49/lb, the cost of obtaining the acetone as a by-product from the ABE technology nbutanol production is only $0.106/lb (ICIS).
Compound
Price/Resale
Value
Global
Market Size
Acetone
Hydrogen
1Nitropropane
$0.106 / lb
$1.125 / lb
$18.50 / lb
6,230,000
50,000,000
-
Amount
Consumed/Produced
Annually (metric tons)
164,822
5,860
-
Propylene
Methyl
Methacrylate
Isopropanol
$0.49 / lb
$1.18 / lb
70,000,000
2,700,000
106,815
82,400
0.15
3.05
$0.62 / lb
2,150,000
170,080
7.91
Bisphenol-A
$0.88 / lb
4,360,000
82,400
1.89
(metric tons)
Reactant
Reactant
Extractive
Distillation
Input
Product
Alternate
Product
Alternate
Product
Alternate
Product
Percent of
Market
2.65
0.01
-
Table B1: Illustrated in this table is the pricing data of several compounds involved in this
process and alternate processes considered. The market share of different potential products
and reactants are also displayed. The Amount Consumed/Produced category for acetone,
hydrogen, propylene, and isopropanol were derived from the Aspen Simulation in the
Appendix. Other products were estimated theoretically based on chemical equations.
As mentioned before, acetone is used primarily to form methyl methacrylate.

However, since new processes to form methyl methacrylate are constantly being
developed, the global demand of acetone is expected to decrease. Thus, rather than
simply selling off or burning the excess acetone, an alternative suggested by consultants
of ABE Technologies, numerous alternative options were considered to maximize profits.
Propylene was chosen as a product because of its potential for profits and its
enormous market size.
The global demand of propylene is predicted to reach

-5-
88,000,000 metric tons in 2011. An insufficient supply is the reason behind increasing
propylene prices (ICIS). The strong expected future growth of propylene demand and the
increasing propylene prices make it an ideal candidate for a product.
In addition to expected increases in propylene prices, the enormous market size of
propylene minimizes the risk of prices being driven down by the production proposed.
For example, if the global market size of propylene were to decrease by 1 million metric
tons, there would not be much of an impact on the percentage of market that our process
consumes. On the contrary, if the demand of methyl methacrylate, isopropanol, or
bisphenol-A were to decrease by 1 million metric tons, there would be a crucial change in
the percentage of market this product consumes.
Furthermore, the large market size of propylene offers a great amount of
flexibility in the given initial amount of acetone. For instance, if 100 million gallons of
acetone were produced by ABE technologies instead of the expected 50 million gallons,
the propylene market share would still be only 0.30%, which is still too small to have a
significant impact on the propylene market price. This additional flexibility is extremely
important considering that many years may pass before this process is implemented.
While propylene was chosen, other alternative products were considered.
Industrial processes converting acetone to methyl methacrylate, isopropanol, and
bisphenol-A have already been optimized. However, these three chemicals all have a
smaller market size than acetone. Since as much as 50 million gallons of acetone are
going to be converted to product each year, production of one of these three chemicals
would result in market saturation causing a downward movement of market prices of the
product, which would have an unfavorable effect on total profits.
-6-
Design Assumptions: It was assumed that the market share of a potential product
would affect the market price, such that greater percentages of market share consumed
would cause greater decreases in the market price of the product. With this assumption,
it was highly recommended to produce a chemical with an extremely large market in
order to minimize the effect on prices. Propylene was an optimal choice because of its
enormous market. The amount of propylene we are producing is only 0.15 % of the
world market size for it, which will have a very small effect on its market price.
It was recommended to us to assume a pure acetone byproduct from the biofuel
manufacturing process of ABE technology. While the validity of this assumption
depends on the process design of the ABE fermentation project to make n-butanol, we
were given that the total cost of acetone is $8/106 BTU. This cost may be interpreted as
the cost of purifying the crude acetone to pure acetone.
The production of propylene following our design utilizes a nickel on silica
catalyst in the first reactor and a -alumina catalyst in the second reactor. The -alumina
catalyst can be regenerated and is assumed to last the life of the project.
-7-
Project Charter:
Project Name:
Project Champions:
Project Team:
Specific Goals:
Project Scope:
Deliverables:
Timeline:
New Product Design Use for Acetone

Bruce Vrana, DuPont Engineering Technology
Neal Behrend, Brian Mahoney, Iryney Makarukha, Sunil
Subramanian
To design a plant that can consume 50 million gallons of acetone
per year while maximizing profits.
In Scope:
Consumption of acetone is at 50MM gal/year
Maximizing profit
o Profit margins of final product exceed profit margins
on fuel cost of acetone
o Evaluate multiple reaction strategies in terms of base
reactant costs, capital investment, and life of project
Evaluate impact on global market for all products and
reactants
o Assumption: Production of any chemical will affect
market prices. For production above 2% of global
market, rigorous economic analysis will be required
Out-of-Scope:
Developing experimental chemical reactions which utilize
acetone to create products
The marketing, distribution and innovation costs in
developing consumer packages for consumer markets
Business Opportunity Assessment
How much will our production impact global prices?
Risk Reward Analysis
Will returns on capital be sufficient to warrant investment?
Manufacturing Analysis
Are all economically feasible production chains optimized?
Reaction Selection Analysis
Why was each reaction chosen to be investigated?
Why was the final reaction process chosen?
Have deliverable report by April 5, 2008.
Figure B1) The project charter identifies the primary goals, scope, and deliverables
that this design is meant to achieve
-8-
Technology Readiness Assessment:
New product design Use for Acetone

Innovation map
Customer
value
proposition
Products
Technical
Differentiation
Material
Technology
Affect on global
market makes
not feasible
Plant cost and

profitability
makes product
not feasible
Affecting
more than
10%
After market
and plant
costs, product
is feasible
Affecting
less than
10%
Products made from

multiple reactions
Products from
single step reactions
New Cheap Supply

of acetone
Figure B2) The innovation map is a visual depiction of the path of choosing a
product. Given a cheap supply of acetone, products from single step reactions were
considered that consume less than 10% of the global market.
-9-
C) Process Description Flow Diagram and Material Balances:

Overview:
The process of converting acetone to polymer grade propylene consists of two
main reactions: hydrogenating acetone to form isopropanol, and then dehydrating
isopropanol to form propylene. The overall process is shown in Figure C1. It includes
the two reactors as well as numerous other equipment units and streams.
As shown in the figure, acetone and hydrogen are fed into the first reactor (R-100)
in order to produce isopropanol. The vapor product is then recycled back into the reactor,
while the liquid product is run through two distillation columns (D-100 and D-101) for
separation of isopropanol from the mixture. 1-Nitropropane is also involved for breaking
the azeotrope that prevents isopropanol and acetone from separating. Since this extractive
agent is expensive, the bottoms stream from the second column is recycled back into the
first column. The isolated isopropanol exits the second column in the overhead stream
and is fed into the second reactor (R-101), where it is dehydrated to form propylene,
which then is run through a flash (F-101). The vapor output from the flash goes through a
series of turbines for compression, while the liquid product is pumped up, with both
eventually being fed into the last distillation column (D-102), which separates off the
polymer grade propylene from water and other impurities. The propylene is maintained
in liquid form where it is then transported by railcar to be sold.
(See Attached Excel/Visio)
- 10 -
Figure C1) The overall process flowsheet is crucial for the following sections in the design report. Stream and block names used in this
figure will be referenced throughout the report.
11

The material and energy properties of all streams involved in the process are also
included for reference purposes (Table C1) and should better facilitate understanding of
the process as each of the two sections is described in detail. For simplification purposes,
the detailed process description has been divided into two sections, in accordance with
the two reactions taking place:
Section 1:
Reaction of Acetone and Hydrogen to form Isopropanol

and Isolation of Isopropanol Product (Fig. C2)
Section 2:
Reaction of Isopropanol to form Propylene and Isolation

of Propylene Product (Fig. C3)
12
Substream: MIXED
Mole Flow lbmol/hr
Hydrogen
Acetone
Isopropanol
Propylene
Water
1-Nitropropane
Mole Frac
Hydrogen
Acetone
Isopropanol
Propylene
Water
1-Nitropropane
Mass Flow lb/hr
Hydrogen
Acetone
Isopropanol
Propylene
Water
1-Nitropropane
Total Flow lbmol/hr
Total Flow lb/hr
Total Flow cuft/hr
Temperature F
Pressure psi
Vapor Frac
Liquid Frac
Solid Frac
Enthalpy Btu/lbmol
Enthalpy Btu/lb
Enthalpy Btu/hr
Entropy Btu/lbmol-R
Entropy Btu/lb-R
Density lbmol/cuft
Density lb/cuft
Average MW
Liq Vol 60F cuft/hr
S-100
S-101
S-102
S-103
S-104
S-105
S-106
S-107
S-108
S-109
S-110
S-111
S-112
S-113
S-114
0 734.803062 2206.26804 1492.87923 1471.21611 21.6631157

0 0.1578906
1.12E-18 21.5052251 0.1578906 1471.21611
0
0
0
716.628294
0 735.452381 22.0635714 10.4043565 11.659215
3.23E-09 8.41967647 2.06848038 1.17111303 8.41967647 10.4043565
3.23E-09 2.06848037
3.23E-09
0
0 316.454002 1029.84281 301.769112 728.073701 0.10381151 14.6659905 712.823548 0.68392602 14.6659905 301.769112 0.10381151 712.719736 0.10381151
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
8.82E-07
8.82E-07
6.43E-08
8.18E-07 5.99971591
8.18E-07 5.99973979
5.86E-09
8.18E-07
6.43E-08 5.83593087 0.16380891 5.99971591
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0.6771485
0.2257253
0.0971261
0
0
2.71E-10
0.5866424
8.67E-03
0.4046875
0
0
3.47E-10
0.824955
5.83E-03
0.169211
0
0
3.60E-11
0.0284518
0.0153129
0.9562352
0
0
1.07E-09
0
5.30E-10
0.0170084
0
0
0.9829916
6.79E-03
0.362237
0.6309701
0
0
3.52E-08
1.55E-21
2.87E-03
0.988808
0
0
8.32E-03
0.92059
0.0501327
0.0292773
0
0
2.51E-10
6.79E-03
0.362237
0.6309701
0
0
3.52E-08
0.824955
5.83E-03
0.169211
0
0
3.60E-11
0
5.44E-10
0.0174774
0
0
0.9825226
0
2.89E-03
0.9968777
0
0
2.29E-04
0
5.30E-10
0.0170084
0
0
0.9829916
0
41621.8
0
0
0
0
716.6283
41621.8
845.6369
77
16.16554
0
1
0
-1.06E+05
-1827.771
-7.61E+07
-74.23365
-1.278127
0.8474421
49.21947
58.08004
849.4234
1481.275
0
0
0
0
0
734.8031
1481.275
57592.68
77
73.47974
1
0
0
0
0
0
-3.196092
-1.585457
0.0127586
0.0257198
2.01588
630.3976
4447.572
42715.1
19017.59
0
0
7.86E-05
3258.174
66180.27
25366.27
217.9161
711.1672
0.7246057
0.2753943
0
-34054.54
-1676.567
-1.11E+08
-27.18599
-1.338416
0.1284452
2.608987
20.31207
3151.4
3009.465
1281.453
61889.35
0
0
7.86E-05
2544.786
66180.27
21685.91
302
711.1672
0.7008015
0.2991985
0
-4.89E+04
-1879.765
-1.24E+08
-38.66006
-1.486569
0.1173474
3.05E+00
26.00623
2565.936
2965.795
604.2854
18135.09
0
0
5.73E-06
1783.39
21705.17
20497.36
302
711.1672
1
0
0
-1.81E+04
-1488.506
-3.23E+07
-16.97506
-1.394744
0.0870058
1.06E+00
12.17074
1643.433
43.67024
677.1677
43754.26
0
0
7.29E-05
761.396
44475.1
1188.549
302
711.1672
0
1
0
-1.21E+05
-2070.711
-9.21E+07
-89.45201
-1.531383
0.6406098
3.74E+01
58.41257
922.5031
0
1.88E-07
6.238648
0
0
534.5394
6.103527
540.7781
10.02472
276.1173
250
0
1
0
-6.55E+04
-738.8202
-4.00E+05
-114.1152
-1.287969
0.6088479
5.39E+01
88.60091
8.725336
0.3182885
489.0151
881.3662
0
0
7.29E-05
23.24356
1370.7
30.09057
159.8593
2.20E+02
0
1
0
-1.21E+05
-2051.213
-2.81E+06
-89.06271
-1.510276
0.7724532
45.55246
58.97116
28.04509
2.25E-18
120.1374
42837.79
0
0
534.5415
720.8918
43492.47
1204.728
345.1424
220.4392
0
1
0
-1.22E+05
-2.02E+03
-8.77E+07
-89.29539
-1.48008
0.5983855
3.61E+01
60.33148
882.5046
43.35195
68.01829
41.10116
0
0
5.22E-07
23.36026
152.4714
704.5427
1.60E+02
220.4392
1
0
0
-7421.753
-1.14E+03
-1.73E+05
-8.494141
-1.301394
0.0331566
2.16E-01
6.526956
20.67388
0.3182885
489.0151
881.3662
0
0
7.29E-05
23.24356
1370.7
30.36773
169.0942
718.2788
0
1
0
-1.21E+05
-2044.372
-2.80E+06
-88.43467
-1.499626
0.7654034
4.51E+01
58.97116
28.04509
2965.795
604.2854
18135.09
0
0
5.73E-06
1783.39
21705.17
20338.75
303.6636
718.2788
1
0
0
-1.81E+04
-1.49E+03
-3.23E+07
-16.97158
-1.394457
0.0876843
1.07E+00
12.17074
1643.433
0
1.88E-07
6.238648
0
0
519.9471
5.939742
526.1858
9.751265
275.6336
17.63514
0
1
0
-6.55E+04
-739.5156
-3.89E+05
-114.1322
-1.288358
0.6091253
5.40E+01
88.58731
8.49061
0
120.1374
42831.55
0
0
14.59441
714.952
42966.28
961.7888
188.2237
1.76E+01
0
1
0
-1.31E+05
-2184.657
-9.39E+07
-101.1665
-1.683394
0.7433566
44.6733
60.09673
874.014
0
1.88E-07
6.238648
0
0
534.5394
6.103527
540.7781
9.982209
270.9548
17.63514
0
1
0
-65698
-741.5048
-4.01E+05
-114.4361
-1.291591
0.6114406
5.42E+01
88.60091
8.725336
Table C1) A summary of the stream data of this process is presented. Please refer to Figure C1 for stream names.
13
Substream: MIXED
Mole Flow lbmol/hr
Hydrogen
Acetone
Isopropanol
Propylene
Water
1-Nitropropane
Mole Frac
Hydrogen
Acetone
Isopropanol
Propylene
Water
1-Nitropropane
Mass Flow lb/hr
Hydrogen
Acetone
Isopropanol
Propylene
Water
1-Nitropropane
Total Flow lbmol/hr
Total Flow lb/hr
Total Flow cuft/hr
Temperature F
Pressure psi
Vapor Frac
Liquid Frac
Solid Frac
Enthalpy Btu/lbmol
Enthalpy Btu/lb
Enthalpy Btu/hr
Entropy Btu/lbmol-R
Entropy Btu/lb-R
Density lbmol/cuft
Density lb/cuft
Average MW
Liq Vol 60F cuft/hr
S-115
S-116
S-117
S-118
S-119
S-120
S-121
S-122
S-123
0
0
0
0
0
0
2.06848037 2.06848037 2.06848037 2.06848037 1.91888373 0.14959664
712.719736 712.719736 7.12719736 7.12719736 5.96826206 1.1589353
0
0 705.592539 705.592539 687.462274 18.1302647
0
0 705.592539 705.592539 163.112188 542.480351
0.16380891 0.16380891 0.16380891 0.16380891 0.0175579 0.14625101
0
1.91888373
5.96826206
687.462274
163.112188
0.0175579
0
0.14959664
1.1589353
18.1302647
542.480351
0.14625101
0
1.91888373
5.96826206
687.462274
163.112188
0.0175579
S-124
S-125
S-126
S-127
S-128
0
0
0
0
0
1.91888373 0.00332809 2.06515228
0 716.628294
5.96826206
9.67E-06 7.12718769
0
0
687.462274 640.99663 64.595909
0
0
163.112188
3.25E-05 705.592506
0
0
0.0175579
2.28E-10 0.16380891 0.16378504
0
0
2.89E-03
0.9968777
0
0
2.29E-04
0
2.89E-03
0.9968777
0
0
2.29E-04
0
1.46E-03
5.02E-03
0.4967057
0.4967057
1.15E-04
0
1.46E-03
5.02E-03
0.4967057
0.4967057
1.15E-04
0
2.24E-03
6.95E-03
0.8007909
0.1900013
2.05E-05
0
2.66E-04
2.06E-03
0.0322565
0.9651552
2.60E-04
0
2.24E-03
6.95E-03
0.8007909
0.1900013
2.05E-05
0
2.66E-04
2.06E-03
0.0322565
0.9651552
2.60E-04
0
2.24E-03
6.95E-03
0.8007909
0.1900013
2.05E-05
0
2.24E-03
6.95E-03
0.8007909
0.1900013
2.05E-05
0
5.19E-06
1.51E-08
0.9999947
5.08E-08
3.56E-13
0
2.65E-03
9.14E-03
0.0828636
0.9051343
2.10E-04
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
120.1374
42831.55
0
0
14.59441
714.952
42966.28
962.6247
189.057
1.10E+02
0
1
0
-1.31E+05
-2183.97
-9.38E+07
-101.1048
-1.682368
0.7427111
44.63451
60.09673
874.014
0
120.1374
42831.55
0
0
14.59441
714.952
42966.28
80772.4
662
106.5456
1
0
0
-99948.66
-1663.13
-7.15E+07
-62.28211
-1.036364
8.85E-03
5.32E-01
60.09673
874.014
0
120.1374
428.3155
29691.79
12711.45
14.59441
1420.545
42966.28
1.50E+05
554
102.8716
1
0
0
-41227.8
-1363.067
-5.86E+07
-16.10283
-0.5323894
9.46E-03
2.86E-01
30.24634
1129.292
0
120.1374
428.3155
29691.79
12711.45
14.59441
1420.545
42966.28
32496.47
140
95.52367
0.3341961
0.6658039
0
-57106.23
-1888.037
-8.11E+07
-3.75E+01
-1.240296
0.0437138
1.32E+00
30.24634
1129.292
0
111.4488
358.6682
28928.85
2938.512
1.564306
858.4792
32339.05
3.76E+05
140
14.69595
1
0
0
-12888.56
-342.1425
-1.11E+07
-2.72E+01
-0.7217445
2.28E-03
8.60E-02
37.67016
947.1573
0
8.688579
69.64728
762.9331
9772.935
13.03011
562.0654
10627.23
185.1254
140
14.69595
0
1
0
-1.18E+05
-6223.062
-6.61E+07
-3.71E+01
-1.964157
3.036133
5.74E+01
18.90747
182.1352
0
111.4488
358.6682
28928.85
2938.512
1.564306
858.4792
32339.05
45481.96
280.8624
150
1
0
0
-10584.43
-280.9766
-9.09E+06
-2.84E+01
-0.7528182
0.0188751
7.11E-01
37.67016
947.1573
0
8.688579
69.64728
762.9331
9772.935
13.03011
562.0654
10627.23
185.5458
143.4949
360
0
1
0
-1.18E+05
-6219.578
-6.61E+07
-3.70E+01
-1.958453
3.029255
5.73E+01
18.90747
182.1352
0
111.4488
358.6682
28928.85
2938.512
1.564306
858.4792
32339.05
48361.15
249
135
1
0
0
-11133.78
-295.5596
-9.56E+06
-2.89E+01
-0.7673905
0.0177514
6.69E-01
37.67016
947.1573
0
111.4488
358.6682
28928.85
2938.512
1.564306
858.4792
32339.05
20200.11
318.7172
355
1
0
0
-9911.054
-263.101
-8.51E+06
-2.92E+01
-0.7746937
0.0424987
1.60E+00
37.67016
947.1573
0
0.1932957
5.81E-04
26973.55
5.86E-04
2.04E-08
641
26973.74
975.3501
135.4785
350
0
1
0
4950.459
117.642
3.17E+06
-4.65E+01
-1.104612
0.6571999
2.77E+01
42.08072
830.2218
0
119.9441
428.3149
2718.237
12711.45
14.59441
779.5446
15992.54
367.8121
358.0683
350
0.00E+00
1
0.00E+00
-1.06E+05
-5185.435
-8.29E+07
-3.13E+01
-1.524604
2.12E+00
4.35E+01
20.51523
299.0706
0
0
0
0
0
14.59228
0.163785
14.59228
0.2346597
77
17.63514
0
1
0
-72454.27
-813.2329
-1.19E+04
-1.27E+02
-1.428605
0.6979685
6.22E+01
89.09412
0.2347266
0
41621.8
0
0
0
0
716.6283
41621.8
852.2996
86.41047
718.2788
0
1
0
-1.06E+05
-1822.904
-7.59E+07
-73.71878
-1.269262
0.8408174
48.83471
58.08004
849.4234
Table C1 (continued)
14
Section 1: Reaction of Acetone and Hydrogen to form Isopropanol and Isolation of

Isopropanol Product
The purpose of this section is to hydrogenate acetone to form isopropanol (See

Figure C2). A feed of 41,622 lb/hr of acetone (S-100) is pumped to a pressure of 50.5
kg/cm2 by pump P-104 and enters the first reactor (R-100). Enough hydrogen is fed into
the reactor to maintain the 3:1 ratio of hydrogen to acetone recommended in the patent.
The reaction occurs at a temperature of 150C and a pressure of 50 kg/cm2 (Acetone to
Isopropanol: Patent # 6878851). The main reaction that occurs in this vessel is:
CH3COCH3 (l) + H2 (g) C3H8O (l)
Catalyst: Nickel on Silica Support (Reaction 1)
The reactor is designed as a multi-tubular reactor as specified in the United States

Patent 6878851 (see Appendix), where hydrogen gas bubbles up and the acetone flows
down through a packed bed of solid nickel on silica catalyst. The conversion of acetone
is about 97% under these conditions.
The separation after this reaction should yield a pure isopropanol stream and
recycle as much of the remaining hydrogen and acetone as possible. The product stream
(S-103) enters a flash separator (F-100) at a temperature of 150C and 50 kg/cm2. In
actuality, however, this flash tank is merely a representation of how the reactor runs, and
there would be no flash vessel in the actual plant. The temperature is maintained by
flowing boiler feed water over the tubes in which the reaction is taking place. The vapor
stream from the separation is a vapor mixture of acetone, hydrogen, and isopropanol,
15
which is ultimately compressed and recycled into the reactor. The compressor (C-100)
has a discharge pressure of 50.5 kg/cm2.
The liquid stream (S-105) coming out of the flash separator consists of 95.5%
isopropanol, and the remaining portion is a mixture of acetone and hydrogen. The
isopropanol needs to be further purified before it can be sent into the second reactor for
dehydration to form propylene. To conduct the separation, two distillation columns (D100 and D-101) are used along with the introduction of 1-Nitropropane, which is an
extractive distillation component. An extractive distillation component is needed to
break the azeotrope that occurs between isopropanol and acetone. A pure isopropanol
feed to R-101 is desired to limit impurities and also due to lack of patent information for
the otherwise impure reaction case. The column (D-100) removes some acetone,
hydrogen, and a small amount of isopropanol, which is pumped and recycled into the
initial feed mix. This column is designed to have a small fraction of hydrogen purged (S109) to avoid accumulation. This also greatly reduces the heat duty of the condenser as
condensing hydrogen would require a refrigerant. The bottoms stream of the column is
fed into a second column (D-101), where further purification of isopropanol occurs.
The second distillation column (D-101) removes the extractive agent 1Nitropropane from the isopropanol product. 1-Nitropropane comes out of the bottom of
the column and is recycled back to the first distillation column. About 97% of the 1Nitropropane fed to the first column is recovered in the second. The rest exists in trace
amounts throughout the rest of the process. Isopropanol comes off from the top of the
column at 99.97% purity.
16
Acetone to Isopropanol with Separations

S-104
302
711
V
S-111
303
718
V
Acetone
C-100
S-100
77
16
L
P-104
S-128
86
718
L
S-101
77
73
V
Hydrogen
S-103
302
711
V,L
S-102
218
711
V,L
S-109
160
220
V
Isopropanol to
Second Reactor
S-113
188
18
L
F-100
S-110
169
718
L
R-100
S-107
160
220
L
S-115
189
110
L
P-102
S-116
662
107
V
H-100
S-105
302
711
L
P-100
S-108
345
220
L
D-100
D-101
S-112
276
18
L
KEY
Stream
Temperature (F)
Pressure (psi)
V=Vapor
L=Liquid
S-106
276
250
L
S-114
271
18
L
S-127
77
18
L
P-101
1-Nitropropane
Figure C2) The first section of the overall process will conduct the reaction of acetone to isopropanol and perform the required separation to
obtain a pure isopropanol stream into section 2.
17
Section 2: Reaction of Isopropanol to form Propylene and Separation and Isolation

of Propylene Product
The purpose of this section is to convert isopropanol to propylene (See Figure
C3). The reactor conditions specified by the patent suggest a temperature between 290C
and 360C with a pressure of 7 atm. After coming off of the second column (D-101), the
99.97% pure isopropanol stream is pressurized to 7.5 atm by a pump (P-102) to account
for piping length and heated to 350C by heater (H-100) before it is fed into the second
reactor (R-101). This yields a 99.8% conversion of isopropanol into propylene and
water. The reaction occurring in this step is as follows:
C3H8O (g) C3H6 (g) + H2O (g)
Catalyst: -Alumina
(Reaction 2)
The purity of propylene should be at least 99.8%, which is considered polymer

grade. The product stream (S-117) of the reactor is comprised of equal parts of propylene
and water and trace amounts of acetone, isopropanol, and 1-nitropropane. This stream is
too hot to be fed directly into a column so it is cooled to 140F. This causes some vapor
to form. As a result this product cannot go through a compressor or pump without first
being separated. Therefore, it is flashed at a temperature of 140F and a pressure of 1 atm
to get separated into liquid and solid. The liquid stream (S-120) is pumped up to a
discharge pressure of 360 psia and sent to the final distillation column (D-102), where
propylene is isolated from water, isopropanol, and trace amounts of other chemicals. The
vapor stream (S-119) of the flash tank undergoes a multi-stage compression. This multistage compression is modeled using a turbine (C-101) with a discharge pressure of 150
18
psia, a heater at 249F and 135 psia, and another turbine (C-102) with a discharge
pressure of 355 psia. In between the turbines is a shell and tube heat exchanger (H-102)
which cools the product of the first turbine (C-101) while keeping it at vapor phase so
that it is not too hot before being fed into the second turbine. The product stream of this
multistage compression (S-124) is also fed into the column for the final separation of
propylene. Propylene liquid (S-125) exits the top of the distillation column with a purity
of 99.9996%. A liquid propylene product is desired, and to obtain the purity of polymer
grade the column is pressurized at 350 psia. Polymer grade propylene also requires less
than 1 ppm of water, which is achieved in our product. The bottoms stream (S-126),
which is over 90% water, is sent into a wastewater facility for treatment.
19
Figure C3) This figure illustrates the process units and streams involved with the reaction of isopropanol to form propylene and the purification
of the product propylene stream.
20
D) Energy Balance and Utility Requirements:
This process requires a large amount of utilities. The process uses cooling water
in all of the condensers as well as in heat exchangers which cool and condense streams.
Boiler feed water, higher purity cooling water, is used to cool our reactor and prevent
build up. Steam is used in the distillation columns but is required at different pressures
depending on the heat duty required. Natural gas is used in a heater (H-100) before the
second reactor, as well as in the second reactor to maintain the appropriate temperature.
Electricity is used in all of the pumps and compressors throughout the process. Waste
water treatment is also required because of the water produced in the second reaction. See
Figure D1 for further information.
Cooling Water: Cooling water is used in several sections of the process. Each of the
distillation columns uses cooling water in the condensers. Cooling water is also used in
two of the heat exchangers in the process. In all of these blocks the cooling water enters
at 90F and is heated to 120F. As a result, the heated cooling water cannot be used
anywhere in our plant except to slightly heat up the feed to R-100. A cooling duty of
74,433,062 Btu/hr is required for the entire process. This corresponds to 297,851 gal/hr
and an annual cost of $117,413 at a price of $0.50/thousand gals.
Boiler Feed Water: Boiler feed water is used to cool the first reactor. This water needs
to be at a higher purity to prevent any possibility of deposit buildup deposits on the tubes
and maintain a very large heat exchange. A total of 13,447,747 Btu/hr of heat needs to be
21
removed from the reactor, assuming that the heat of vaporization is 936 Btu/lb at 130C
and assuming a driving temperature of 20C. Using this information and the density of
water at 8.33 lbs/gal, the price of boiler feed water was calculated as $54,410.94.
Steam: Steam is used in the reboilers of each distillation column. In D-100 and D-102,
higher pressure steam at 150 psia is required. A valve depressurizes it to the proper
saturation temperature. This means that 28,679 lb/hr of high pressure steam will be
needed, which results in $904,432.44 annual cost for 150 psia steam at $4/thousand lbs.
In D-101, lower pressure steam at 50 psia is fed because the reboiler does not run at as
high of a temperature. 18,690 lbs/hr of low pressure steam are used at $2.50/thousand lbs,
which results in an annual cost of $368,386.
Natural Gas: The process requires a heater to heat up the feed to R-101 as well as for
this reactor to be insulated with heat to maintain the reactor temperature at 290C.
Natural gas was used as a fuel for these processes, which requires a combined heat duty
of 35,262,303 Btu/hr. Using natural gas at a higher heating value of 1,050 Btu/SCF and a
heat transfer efficiency of 70%, an annual cost of $1,021,254 was calculated. This is our
most expensive utility; however it may be somewhat offset by selling stream S-109 for
heating value. This stream is comprised of hydrogen, acetone, isopropanol, and trace
amounts of 1-Nitropropene. If this stream is sold for its heating value, the price of heating
drops to $114,161.81/year.
22
Electricity: All of our pumps, condensers and motors use electricity. Our plant uses
1,255.73 Hp per hour after efficiency is taken into account. At a price of $0.04/kW-hr
this comes out to an annual cost of $295,302 for electricity.
Waste Water Treatment: We are producing 15,983 lbs/hr of dirty water in our process.
The cost to remove the 3,273 lbs/hr of impurities at $0.10 per pound of organic solvent
results in an annual cost of $2,591,869 for waste water treatment.
Integration: At the moment, almost no heat and utility integration in our plant is utilized
because very little is possible. The boiler feed water is converted to steam at 39 psia. This
is too low to be used in any of the reboilers and will just be recycled, processed and fed
back to the reactor. The heat exchangers and condensers in the same manner do not
produce useable heat, and the cooling water will just have to go back to the process. If we
could use the water of S-126 after treatment in place of this cooling water, a great deal of
money can be saved. However, this would require a water treatment plant on site, and
the costs of that were not estimated. Some of the excess heat from the stack of H-100
may be used to pre-heat some of the streams flowing into R-100 however Aspen made it
difficult to model this. In the future, research of the reaction of acetone to isopropanol
and whether or not higher temperatures result in the same conversion and selectivity
should be conducted. If reactor R-100 can be set at a higher temperature, heat integration
throughout the process can be conducted and it would significantly improve the energy
efficiency and cost efficiency of the plant.
23
Cooling Water
D-100
D-101
D-102
H-101
H-102
Totals:
Cost:
Heat Duty
Flow rate (Gal/hr)
9,491,220
37,980.07
23,900,000
95,638.26
18,027,813
72,140.11
22,537,729
90,186.99
476,300
1,905.96
74,433,062
297,851.39
$117,413.02
Natural Gas
H-100
R-101
Totals:
Cost:
Duty
SCF/hr
22373873.4
30,440.64
12888429.8
17,535.28
35,262,303
47,976
$1,021,253.87
Boiler Feed Water

R-100
Cost:
Duty
Flowrate (Lbs / hr)
13,447,747
14372.24541
$54,410.94
D-100
D-102
Totals:
Cost:
Duty
Flowrate (lbs/hr)
12,100,000
13764.51
12,879,205
14914.85
24,979,205
28679.36
$904,432.44
D-101
Cost:
Duty
Flowrate (lbs/hr)
17,340,000
18690.33513
$368,386.51
Low Pressure Steam
High Pressure Steam
Electricity
Horsepower
Reboiler Pump D-100
Reboiler Pump D-101
Reboiler Pump D-102
Reflux Pump D-100
Reflux Pump D-101
Reflux Pump D-102
Pump P-100
Pump P-101
Pump P-102
Pump P-103
Pump P-104
Comp C-100
Comp C-101
Comp C-102
Column Pump CP-100
Total:
Cost:
0.6275
0.0076
0.2300
0.0051
0.4648
1.4618
3.6840
0.5700
12.5110
14.5479
79.6270
12.4219
778.6860
412.4530
2.8760
1320.1737
$295,459.48
Figure D1) Above the utility usage and total cost can be seen for each
process unit.
24
E) Equipment List and Unit Descriptions:
Brief Overview: The following information is a summary of the design specifications

for each process unit. The units are listed in sequential order from the beginning of the
process (i.e. feed streams into the reactor) to the propylene product stream from the final
distillation tower. Refer to Figure C1 for unit names, Section F: Specifications for further
quantitative information of each of these units, and Appendix 4 for sample calculations
for each type of unit.
Storage Tank ST-100: This tank is not represented in Figure C1; however, it is implied
that a storage tank will be necessary to hold the acetone feed. It has a volume of
1,275,193 gallons, which is 1.2 times the amount of acetone needed for a week of
production. The pressure of this tank will be under 30 psia. The flow of acetone in the
feed stream from this tank will be 41,621.8 lb/hr. This storage tank was priced using a
correlation for a carbon steel physical tank using the volume as the independent variable.
As a result of the amount of acetone processed per week, the storage tank should be
located next to the rail system which comes into our plant.
Pump P-104: A reciprocating pump used to pressurize the acetone from S-100 before it
enters R-100. It raises the pressure from atmospheric to 718 psia. It is modeled as a two
stage pump, HSC oriented, with an RPM of 3,600 due to the high head and large flow
rate of 105.42 gal/min. The type factor is 8.9 and the horsepower is 79.63. The pump is
made of cast steel and has a head of 2054 feet. A size factor was used to estimate the
25
cost based on flow rate and head. It uses a fan cooled electric motor to drive it. The
pump operates at 70% efficiency.
Reactor R-100: The hydrogenation

reaction is carried out in a multi-tubular
packed bed reactor, which is designed as a
shell-and-tube heat exchanger in order to be
able to precisely control the temperature
within the reactor, based on U.S. Patent
#6878851.
The reactor is composed of three sections:
top chamber, reacting tubes, and bottom
Figure E1) A rough schematic of
the multi-tubular reactor R-100 is
presented.
chamber. The liquid mixture of acetone

reactant and fraction of recycled isopropanol
are fed in through the top chamber and drip
down the tubes at trickle-flow velocity, while gaseous hydrogen enters through the
bottom chamber and bubbles up counter-currently at 1.2 in/s through the packed bed
reactor tubes, where the catalyzed reaction takes place.
The temperature and pressure are maintained at 150C and 711 psia, respectively,
allowing for 97% conversion of acetone to isopropanol. The pressure drop of 0.24 psia
can be regarded as negligible. The middle section of the reactor consists of 1,628 openended vertical 21.4-ft long stainless steel tubes of 1.76 in. inner and 2.00 in. outer
diameters. These are arranged on a square 2.50 in. pitch packed with a bed of 0.7 inch
26
spherical catalyst particles. The catalyst used in this reaction is nickel on silica support.
The overall shell is made of carbon steel, with inner shell diameter of 120 inches. The
size calculations are estimated based on the amount of annual flow of hydrogenated
product provided by the process, or 157 kilotons per year. Based on this value, the inner
shell diameter and catalyst needed for the reaction to complete were derived, governing
the calculation of the rest of parameters.
The reaction is highly exothermic with the heat of reaction of -17,000,000 Btu/hr.
However excess hydrogen acts as a heat sink providing that only 13,447,747 Btu/hr be
removed. The reactor acts as a heat exchanger as well, with boiler feed water flowing on
the shell side to keep the reactor temperature capped at 150C to prevent undesirable
products and excess hydrogenation decomposition of acetone. Using a fixed bed pseudohomogeneous model correlation, the overall heat transfer coefficient is calculated to be
65.6 Btu/(ft2Fhr). A large amount of heat needs to be removed by the cooling water;
however, given the large size of the reactor, based on the amount of catalyst needed, the
area necessary for the heat transfer is far from a limiting factor. As a result, the tubes are
designed of slightly greater diameter than typical for heat exchangers, so that the number
of tubes required for this reaction could be estimated using tube layout correlations from
Perrys Handbook. Please see A4.8 for detailed calculations and Section F:
Specifications for quantitative information.
Flash Tank F-100: Flash Tank F-100 is not a separate unit, but is part of the two block
representation of the first reactor. The reaction is a tri-phase reaction, and therefore takes
place at vapor liquid equilibrium. To represent this, the exit stream of the reactor was sent
27
to F-100. S-104 and S-105 represent the gas and liquid flow out of the reactor,
respectively.
Compressor C-100: This compressor is used to recompress vapor coming off the top of
the reactor. This vapor contains mostly excess hydrogen and some isopropanol and
acetone which escape in the vapor phase. The vapor of S-111 is compressed to 7 psia
higher than S-104 to account for tubing length as it is recycled and to account for the
pressure drop of the reactor. The horsepower is 12.42 and the flow rate is 20,497 ft3/hr.
The compressor was modeled as a screw compressor because of the low horsepower that
is needed using Figure 16.9 in Seider. Cost was estimated using brake horsepower for a
correlation. It is made of stainless steel and using an electric motor drive.
Distillation Column D-100:
This is the first distillation column in a two step
separation to isolate isopropanol from acetone and hydrogen in order to have a pure
isopropanol feed to the second reactor. There are 28 real stages in this column. The
column diameter is 4.34 ft, the column thickness is 0.25 in, and the column height is 68
ft. The calculated tray efficiency is 73%.
An extractive agent 1-Nitropropane is introduced in the 8th stage via S-106 to
crack the azeotrope between acetone and isopropanol. This separating agent pulls
isopropanol, the lighter key, down the column. It is interesting to notice that the small
amounts of hydrogen which enter the column as a Henrys component end up
concentrated in the top stage of the column. As a result, the top stage has very different
properties than the rest of the column, and its viscosity and K values were not used to
28
estimate tray efficiencies. The build up of this hydrogen also led us to purge off some
gas from the top of our column in S-109. This lowered the heat duty in the top of the
column as the hydrogen was difficult to condense. Acetone and hydrogen coming off the
top of the column in S-107 are recycled back into the reactor. The tray efficiency was
calculated using the O'Connell correlation averaging values from the top, middle, and
bottom of the column. The trays are sieve and made of 316 stainless steel.
Because of the size of the column, it will need to be broken into two parts. A
pump, CP-100, is used to pump the liquid coming down from stage 14 into stage 15. The
pump was modeled with a head of 38 feet. The column was pressurized so that cooling
water could be used in the condenser. Steam is fed to the column at 150 psia and then
dropped to the pressure of 119 psia in the reboiler. Size and cost of the column were
estimated using Seiders correlation for vertical pressure vessels using weight as the
independent variable. The column was designed using carbon steel, and the thickness
was estimated based upon the inner diameter.
Pump P-100: This pump is used to recycle the hydrogen and acetone which come off
the top of D-100 via S-107. It raises the pressure to 718 psia so that it is at a higher
pressure than the reactor as well as pressurized enough to account for piping length. The
volumetric flow rate is 3.94 gal/min, the horsepower is 3.684, and the head is 1573.8 ft.
The pump is designed as a centrifugal pump. It is a two stage, HSC oriented, pump with
an RPM of 3,600 due to the high head that it develops. The pump is made of cast steel
and the type factor is 8.9. A size factor was used to estimate the cost, based upon flow
rate and head. A fan cooled electric motor is used to drive it.
29
Distillation Column D-101: Distillation column D-101 is used as a second step in

isolating and purifying isopropanol from the other components present in the stream.
There are 29 real stages and the tray efficiency is 42%. The column diameter is 6.44 ft,
the height is 70 ft, and the thickness is 0.375 in.
In this column, isopropanol is separated from our extractive agent 1-Nitropropane.
It is condensed in the top of the column so that it can then be pumped and pressurized
before it is vaporized and enters the second reactor. The tray efficiency, size, and cost
were all estimated in the same way as D-100. The coefficients for the reboiler and
condenser were estimated in the same way and used the same coefficients as that of D100. Once again, 316 stainless steel was used for the sieve trays and the carbon steel was
used for the column. In the reboiler, 50 psia steam is fed and dropped to a pressure of 47
psia.
Pump P-101: Pump P-101 is there to pressurize the 1-Nitropropane feed going into D100 to a pressure of 250 psia. This is a reciprocating pump with a horsepower of 0.57, a
head of 617.64 ft, and a flow rate of 1.22 gal/min. Stream S-112 comes off of D-101 and
is recycled back and combined with the pure 1-Nitropropane feed of S-128 to make S114. This pump is made of cast steel. The pump is a centrifugal pump with two stages
due to the large pump head. It operates at 3,600 RPM and has an HSC orientation. Cost
estimates were done in the same manner of P-100.
30
Pump P-102: Pump P-102 is used to pressurize S-113 to 110 psia before in enters H100 to be vaporized for R-101. This is a reciprocating pump with a horsepower of 12.51,
a head of 312.11 ft, and a flow rate of 119.88 gal/min. The second reaction takes place at
7 atmospheres and is a gas phase reaction. It is more cost efficient to first pump the
reactant before vaporizing it. The pump is a 1 stage, 3,600 RPM, HSC pump and is made
of cast steel. Cost estimates were done in the same manner as P-100.
Heater H-100: Heater H-100 is designed to vaporize our isopropanol so that the gas
phase reaction can take place converting it to propylene. The heater is operated at 106
psia and heats S-115 to 662F, completely vaporizing it. The cost was estimated using
Seiders correlation for a pyrolysis heater using heat absorbed as the size factor. The
heater is designed to use natural gas at 1,050 Btu/SCF. The thermal efficiency was
estimated to be 70%. The heat duty is 22,373,873 Btu/hr.
Reactor R-101: This reactor is a 6 meter inner diameter with 4.07 meter height carbon
steel tube. It is modeled as a vertical pressure vessel with a thickness of 0.5 inches. It is
packed with 9,719 kg of high purity (99.75% by mass) -alumina nanopowder having a
mean pore diameter of 69 and a specific surface area of 275m2/g. The reactor will run at
290C and at a pressure of 7 atmospheres. This was calculated from US Patent #
5,227,563 which identified a required residence time of 169 seconds. The radius of the
tube was calculated using a correlation specified again in US Patent # 5,227,563 which
required that
MRT
2.1 for a 99% conversion at 290C, where M is the molar flow
3.6 Pr 2
rate, R is the universal gas constant, T is the temperature, P is the pressure of the reactor
31
and r is the radius. The reactor is heated to keep the temperature constant due to the
endothermic reaction. A natural gas heater design is needed to keep the reactor at a
constant temperature. The flow sheet calculated the heat duty for this heater as
12,888,429 Btu/hr. The heater was priced from the heat duty in the same manner as H100 and added to the total cost of the reactor. This heater runs hot steam along the
outside of the reactor and continually supplies heat to the reactor. Fortunately, the
reaction occurs at a range of temperatures and so this is an acceptable method of
maintaining temperature even though it causes a temperature gradient within the reactor.
The reactor was priced in a similar manner as the distillation columns, with an added cost
of -alumina catalyst.
Heat Exchanger H-101: Once the reaction takes place, the hot gas in S-117 coming off
R-101 needs to be cooled down before it is sent to D-102. Cooling water is used to cool
this stream in a shell and tube fixed head heat exchanger. A fixed head was chosen
because it should be the easiest to clean. The U was estimated as 50 Btu/F-ft2-hr from
table 13.5 in Seider. The heat exchanger is at a pressure of 95.5 psia. Once cooled, S118 develops a liquid as well as a vapor phase. It has a carbon steel shell and stainless
steel tubes. This led to the addition of F-101 to separate the liquid and gas phases so they
could be separately pressurized to 350 psia before entering D-102. There are 583 tubes in
this heat exchanger, each with a length of 20 ft. The tubes have an inner diameter of 0.76
in and an outer diameter of 1 in. The area of a tube is 3.8 ft2. The area of the heat
exchanger is 2,344 ft2.
32
Flash Tank F-101: The flash tank is designed to take the cooled product off of R-101 in
S-118 and separate it into liquid and vapor streams. This is so that the product can be
pressurized before entering distillation column D-102 without the danger of causing a
vapor lock. The tank is modeled as a horizontal pressure vessel. The tank thickness was
estimated at 0.5 inches because the tank is operating at 1 atm and a higher thickness was
not thought to be needed. The tanks size is bigger than the outlined correlations for
horizontal tanks in estimating the cost of ladders and platforms. Therefore, the
correlation for vertical pressure vessels was used to estimate the cost of platforms and
ladders. The tank is made of carbon steel. The volumetric flow rate is 33,526.5 ft3/hr.
This flash tank has a diameter of 15.27 ft, a length of 30.53 ft, and a thickness of 0.5 in.
The residence time is approximately 5 minutes.
Turbine C-101: Turbine C-101 is the first in a series of turbines to pressurize S-119,
which is the gas phase coming off of F-101. This stream needs to be pressurized so it can
enter D-102. It raises the pressure from 14.7 psia to 150 psia. The gas needed to be
pressurized to over 350 psia, and although the pressure ratio was 20, it was decided to use
two instead of three turbines in series. A turbine was used instead of a regular
compressor due to the high volume flow. The horsepower is 778.69, the flow rate is
375,925 ft3/hr, and this is a reciprocating compressor. An isentropic efficiency of 85%
was used. The correlation used to estimate cost was that of the reciprocating condenser
based upon horsepower. This piece of equipment is made of stainless steel and has an
electric motor drive.
33
Heat Exchanger H-102: The purpose of H-102 is to cool down S-121 as it comes out of
C-101 so that it is not too hot before entering C-102. The temperature of 249F was
chosen because that is right above the dew point of the gas, and keeps the vapor fraction
at 1. H-102 is modeled with the same coefficients as H-101 and uses cooling water. H102 is modeled as a fixed head shell and tube heat exchanger with carbon steel shell and
stainless steel tubes. There are 237 tubes in this heat exchanger, each with a length of 20
ft. The tubes have an inner diameter of 1.4 in and an outer diameter of 1.5 in. The area
of a tube is 7.33 ft2. The pressure is 135 psia and the area of the heat exchanger is 59.5
ft2.
Turbine C-102: Turbine C-102 is the same as C-101 in build and estimation. It
pressurizes S-123 to a final pressure of 355 psia so that it can go enter D-102 at a higher
pressure than the column. Once again, an isentropic efficiency of 85% was used. It is a
stainless steel, electric motor drive reciprocating condenser. The flow rate is 48,361
ft3/hr and the horsepower is 412.45.
Pump P-103: Pump P-103 serves the same purpose as the series of condensers does for
the gas coming out of F-101 for the liquid in S-120. It raises the pressure to 360 psia to
account for the flow through piping and still be at a higher pressure than D-102. It was
modeled as a cast iron, 3,600 RPM, 2 stage HSC pump. The horsepower is 14.55, the
head is 866.19 ft, and the flow rate is 23.14 gal/min. Cost estimates were done in the
same manner as P-100.
34
Distillation Column D-102: Distillation Column D-102 is the final step in our process.
Its main purpose is to separate propylene from water and all other trace chemicals. The
propylene is to be polymer grade purity and in the liquid form so that it could be shipped
right away. As a result, the column was pressurized to 350 psia. It was modeled the
same way as D-100 and used the same correlations and calculations to estimate tray
efficiency and cost. The column height is 50 ft, the thickness is 0.3125 in, and the
diameter of the column is 7.07 ft. There are 19 real stages and the tray efficiency was
calculated as 55%. The tray type is sieve and the trays are made with 316 stainless steel.
Storage Tank ST-101: This storage tank is to store 1.2 times a days worth of production
of liquid propylene before it is shipped out. The tank is fed with stream S-125 from D102. It is pressurized to 300 psia to keep the propylene in liquid form. Like ST-100, it is
also spherical and carbon steel; however, a different correlation was used because of the
higher pressure of the vessel. The volume of this vessel is 202,318 gallons and the
pressure of the vessel is 300 psia.
Reflux Pumps: Each of the distillation columns needed a reflux pump. The pump costs
were estimated by finding the reflux volumetric flow rate. This was calculated by finding
the vapor leaving the top tray and subtracting from it the flow leaving the top of the
column. A head of 15 feet was estimated as the power the pump would need. The pumps
were all thought to be 1 stage centrifugal pumps with VSC and a 3,600 shaft RPM. They
were cast iron and had fan cooled motors. Pricing was done in the same manner as P100. Please refer to Section F: Specification Sheets for further information.
35
Reboiler Pumps: Each of the distillation columns also needed a reboiler pump. The cost
and sizing was done exactly the same as the reflux pumps except a head of 20 feet was
used. They are the same type of pumps with the same type of motor as the reflux pumps.
Please refer to Section F: Specification Sheets for further information.
Reflux Accumulators: Reflux accumulators were added to each distillation column.

They were modeled as horizontal pressure vessels. They used the flow rate from the
reflux pumps to estimate the volume needed. A residence time of 5 minutes was used for
each one. Please refer to Section F: Specification Sheets for further information.
Reboilers: Each column was fit with a kettle reboiler. It was modeled as a kettle shell
and tube heat exchanger with a carbon steel shell and stainless steel tubes. They were
priced by calculating the area from heat duty and driving temperature of 35F instead of a
Tlm. Each used a U value of 100 Btu/F-ft2-hr was used based on Seider table 13.5. The
pressure of steam needed was calculated by finding the heat of vaporization of steam at
the temperature needed, then finding the corresponding pressure. The lowest pressure
steam possible was then used in each. From this, the required pounds of steam were
calculated for utility costs. Please refer to Section F: Specification Sheets for further
information.
Condensers: Each distillation column also has a condenser. The pressures of each
column were varied so that cooling water could be used in each condenser. The
36
condensers were modeled as fixed head shell and tube heat exchangers with carbon steel
shells and stainless steel tubes. The area was calculated and then used to estimate the
cost. A U value of 50 Btu/F-ft2-hr was used for each one. The heat needed to be
removed was used to calculate the amount of cooling water needed. Please refer to
Section F: Specification Sheets for further information.
37
F) Specification Sheets
Distillation Column D-100

N Stages Real: 28
Column Diameter (ft): 4.34
Type of Tray: Sieve
Column Height (ft): 68
Tray Material: 316 Stainless Steel
Column Thickness (in): 0.25
Tray Efficiency: 73%
Column Material: Carbon Steel
Stream:
Stage Theoretical
Hydrogen
Acetone
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
Out (lbs/hr)
In (lbs/hr)
S-105 S-106 S-107 S-108 S-109
10.0 8
1L
20
1V
43.7 0
0.3
0
43.4
677.2 0
489.0 120.1 68.0
43754
6.2 881.4 42837.0 41.1
0 534.5
0
534.5 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Tray Cost:
Ladder/Platform Cost:
Column Cost:
$37,645.33
$17,681.62
$33,043.01
Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
4.16
$ 367,619.02
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$ 489,817.44
A4.4
38

Reflux Pump
Head (ft): 15
Flow rate (gal/min): 76.73
Efficiency: 70%
Horsepower: 0.007332
Cost Motor: $2.50
CBM: $6,284.20
Costing Method:
Reboiler Pump
Head (ft): 20
Efficiency: 70%
Horsepower: 0.627483
Cost Motor: $309.57
CBM: $58,329.87
Costing Method:
Reflux Accumulator
Flow rate (ft3/hr):
Length (ft): 4
Cost Ladders: $2,096.20
Cost Bare Module: $52,375.94
Costing Method:
Condenser
Type: Shell Tube / Fixed Head
Heat Duty (Btu/hr): 9,491,220
Pressure: 220
Length: 8
CBM: $192,603.72
Costing Method:
Reboiler
Type: Shell Tube / Kettle
Pressure of Steam (psia): 119
Length (ft): 8
Delta H (Btu/lb): 879.07
CBM: $711,579.00
Costing Method:
Column Pump
Head (ft): 38
Efficiency: 70%
Horsepower: 2.88
Cost Motor: $345.58
CBM: $69410.60
Costing Method:
Type: Reciprocating
Orientation: HSC
Material: Cast Steel
RPM: 3,600
CP Pump: $6,284.20
Cost Indexed: $8,373.10
A4.6
Type: Reciprocating
Orientation: HSC
RPM: 3,600
CP Pump: $17,366.15
A4.6
Residence Time (min): 5
Diameter (ft): 8
Fbm: 3.05
Indexed: $69,918.57
A4.7
Material S/T: Carbon /Stainless Steel
Tlm:125.68
U(Btu/hr-0F-ft2):50
Area (ft2): 1510.41
A4.5.2
T driving: 35
U (Btu/hr-0F-ft2): 100
Area (ft2): 3,457.14
Steam (Lbs): 13,764.51
A4.5.1
Type: Reciprocating
Orientation: HSC
RPM: 3,600
CP Pump: $20448.12
Cost Indexed: $92483.04
A4.6
39

N Stages Real: 29
Type of Tray: Sieve
Column Thickness (in): 0.375
Stream:
Stage Theoretical
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
Out (lbs/hr)
In (lbs/hr)
S-108
S-113 S-112
4
1
12
120.1
120.14
0
0
0
0
42837.8
42831.6
6.2
534.52
14.59 520.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Tray Cost:
Column Cost:
$ 61,117.07
$ 11,464.59
$ 34,304.02
Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
4.16
$ 444,644.41
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$ 592,446.46
A4.4
40

Reflux Pump
Head (ft): 15
Efficiency: 70%
Horsepower: 0.66
Cost Motor: $299.47
CBM: $7,298.83
Costing Method:
Reboiler Pump
Head (ft): 20
Efficiency: 70%
Horsepower: 0.0076
Cost Motor: $8.21
CBM: $15,070.73
Costing Method:
Reflux Accumulator
Flow rate (ft3/hr): 961.53
Length (ft): 9.35
Cost Ladders: $2,160
Costing Method:
Condenser
Pressure (Psia): 17.64
Length (ft): 8
CBM: $435,190.69
Costing Method:
Reboiler
Length (ft): 8
CBM: $898,878.70
Costing Method:
Type: Reciprocating
Orientation: HSC
RPM: 3,600
CP Pump: $7,298.83
A4.6
Type: Reciprocating
Orientation: HSC
RPM: 3,600
CP Pump: $4,558.68
A4.6
Diameter (ft): 4.67
Fbm: 3.05
Indexed: $79,385.67
A4.7
Tlm: 99.10
U(Btu/hr-0F-ft2): 50
Area (ft2): 4,823.54
A4.5.2
T driving: 35
Area (ft2): 4,954.29
Steam (Lbs): 18,690.34
Cost Indexed: $1,197,671
A4.5.1
41

N Stages Real: 19
Type of Tray: Sieve
Column Thickness (in): .3125
Stream:
Out (lbs/hr)
In (lbs/hr)
S-122 S-124
S-125 S-126
Stage in/out
6
5
1
10
Acetone
8.7
111.4
0.2
120
Hydrogen
0
0
0
0
Isopropanol
69.6
358.7
0
428.3
1-NitroPropane
13
1.6
0
14.6
Propylene
762.9 28928.9 26973.6 2718.2
Water
9773.0 2938.5
0 12711.5
Tray Cost:
$47,637.15
$ 8,665.86
Column Cost:
$26,738.50
Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
4.16
$345,452.69
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$460,282.91
A4.4
42

Reflux Pump
Head (ft): 15
Efficiency: 70%
Horsepower: 2.09
Cost Motor: $359.60
CBM: $8,795.71
Costing Method:
Reboiler Pump
Head (ft): 20
Efficiency: 70%
Horsepower: 0.23
Cost Motor: $276.93
CBM: $10,444.82
Costing Method:
Reflux Accumulator
Flow rate (ft3/hr): 4,703.17
Length (ft): 15.86
Cost Ladders: $2,405.34
Costing Method:
Condenser
Pressure (Psia): 350
Length (ft): 8
CBM: $1,153,092.37
Costing Method:
Reboiler
Length (ft): 8
CBM: $746,525.00
Costing Method:
Type: Reciprocating
Orientation: HSC
RPM: 3,600
CP Pump: $8,795.71
A4.6
Type: Reciprocating
Orientation: HSC
RPM: 3,600
CP Pump: $2,888.16
A4.6
Diameter (ft): 7.93
Fbm: 3.05
Indexed: $133,329.25
A4.7
Tlm: 25.53
Area (ft2): 14,121.90
Cost Indexed: $1,536,386.11
A4.5.2
T driving: 35
Area (ft2): 3,679.77
Steam (Lbs): 14,914.85
A4.5.1
43
Reactor R-100
Type: Vertical Fixed Bed Shelland-Tube Heat Exchanger
Catalyst:
Vcatalyst (ft3):
Heat Duty(Btu/hr): 13,447,747
Nickel on Silica Diameter (ft):

353
Height (ft):
Tube-Side (Reaction):
10.0
21.4
Shell-Side (Cooling Water):
Treactants (0F):
Tproducts (0F):
Pressure (Psia):
Phase:
Stream:
194
Tcw,in (0F):
90
0
302
Tcw,out ( F):
120
711
FlowCW (lb/hr):
450,899
Vapor/Liquid
Phase:
Liquid
In (lb/hr)
Out (lb/hr)
S-105
S-104
S-102
Stage in/out
In
Liq
Vap
Acetone
42715.1
677.2
604.3
Hydrogen
4447.6
43.7
2965.8
Isopropanol
19017.6
43754.3
18135.1
1-NitroPropane
0
0
0
Propylene
0
0
0
Water
0
0
0
Tube Mat: Stainless Steel
Shell Mat : Carbon Steel
Tube ID (in): 1.76
Tube Length (ft): 21.4
Tube OD (in): 2.00
N Tubes: 1628
2
At (ft /tube): 9.86
N Passes: 1
2
0
Ui (Btu/ft -hr- F): 65.6
Cost of Purchase:
Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
Cost of Catalyst:
Total CBM:
Costing Method:
$357,287.35
3.3
$1,179,048.26
$46,200.00
$1,225,248.26
A.8
44
Reactor R-101
Type: Plug Flow Tube Reactor
Length: 4 meters
Heating Load: 12,888,429 Btu/hr
Diameter: 6 meters
Residence Time: 169 seconds
Thickness: .1524 meters
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-116
120.1
0
42831.6
14.6
0
0
Out (lbs/hr)
S-117
120.1
0
428.3
14.6
29691.8
12711.5
Material:
Catalyst:
Catalyst pore diameter
Stainless Steel
Gamma Alumina Nanopowder
69
Cost of Purchase:
Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$ 88,141.90
4.16
$366,670.30
Kilograms Catalyst:
Cost of Catalyst:
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
9718.99
$151,616.25
$1,162,420.34
A4.1 Heater
A4.4 Reactor
45
Compressor C-100
Type: Compressor
Flow Rate in (ft3/hr): 20,497
Horsepower: 12.42
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-100
604.3
2965.8
18135.1
0
0
0
Out (lbs/hr)
S-128
604.3
2965.8
18135.1
0
0
0
Material:
Type:
Motor Type:
Stainless Steel
Screw
Electric
Cost of Purchase Motor:

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$36,579.28
2.15
$78,645.46
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$104,787.60
A4.3.2
46
Compressor C-101
Type: Turbine
Horsepower: 778.69
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-119
111.4
0
358.7
1.6
28928.9
2938.5
Out (lbs/hr)
S-121
111.4
0
358.7
1.6
28928.9
2938.5
Material:
Type:
Motor Type:
Stainless Steel
Reciprocating
Electric

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$ 1,035,895.72
2.15
$ 2,227,175.79
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$2,967,500.31
A4.3.1
47
Compressor C-102
Type: Turbine
Horsepower: 412.45
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-123
111.4
0
358.7
1.6
28928.9
2938.5
Out (lbs/hr)
S-124
111.4
0
358.7
1.6
28928.9
2938.5
Material:
Type:
Motor Type:
Stainless Steel
Reciprocating
Electric

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$ 623,053.99
2.15
$1,339,566.09
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$1,784,844.64
A4.3.1
48
Pump P-100
Type: Reciprocating
RPM: 3,600
Flow Rate (gal/min): 3.94
Orientation: HSC
Head (feet): 1573.76
Materiel: Cast Steel
Horsepower: 3.684
Efficiency: 70%
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-107
489.0
0.3
881.4
0
0
Cost of Purchase Pump:

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$23,509.13
3.3
$79,363.32

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$385.98
3.3
$540.37
CBM Pump:
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$79,903.68
$106,464.07
A4.6
Out (lbs/hr)
S-110
489.0
0.3
881.4
0
0
49
Pump P-101
Type: Reciprocating
RPM: 3,600
Orientation: HSC
Head (feet): 617.64
Horsepower: 0.57
Efficiency: 70%
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-114
0
0
6.2
534.5
0
0

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$9,320.25
3.3
$31,884.72

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$235.47
3.3
$329.66
CBM Pump:
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$32,174.38
$42,869.30
A4.6
Out (lbs/hr)
S-106
0
0
6.2
534.5
0
0
50
Pump P-102
Type: Reciprocating
RPM: 3,600
Orientation: HSC
Head (feet): 322.11
Horsepower: 12.51
Efficiency: 70%
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-113
120.1
0
42831.6
14.6
0
0

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$5,235.61
3.3
$17,950.76

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$145.72
3.3
$204.01
CBM Pump:
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$18,154.77
$24,189.51
A4.6
Out (lbs/hr)
S-115
120.1
0
42831.6
14.6
0
0
51
Pump P-103
Type: Reciprocating
RPM: 3,600
Orientation: HSC
Head (feet): 866.19
Horsepower: 14.55
Efficiency: 70%
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-120
8.7
0
69.6
13.0
762.9
9772.9

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$7,119.70
3.3
$27,961.36

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$966.74
3.3
$1,353.44
CBM Pump:
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$29,314.80
$39,059.19
A4.6
Out (lbs/hr)
S-122
8.7
0
69.6
13.0
762.9
9772.9
52
Pump P-104
Type: Reciprocating
RPM: 3,600
Orientation: HSC
Head (feet): 2054.1
Horsepower: 79.63
Efficiency: 70%
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-100
41621.8
0
0
0
0
0

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$33,090.71
3.3
$133,165.57

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$5,187.49
3.3
$7,262.49
CBM Pump:
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$140,428.06
$187,107.06
A4.6
Out (lbs/hr)
S-128
41621.8
0
0
0
0
0
53
Heater H-100
Type: Pyrolysis
Fuel: Natural Gas
HHV: 1,050 Btu/SCF

Efficiency: 70%
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-115
120.1
0
42831.6
14.6
0
0
Out (lbs/hr)
S-116
120.1
0
42831.6
14.6
0
0
Cost of Purchase Heater:

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$459,790.84
2.19
$1,006,941.94

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$385.98
3.3
$540.37
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$1,341,654.54
A4.1
54
Heat Exchanger H-101

Type: Shell And Tube/Fixed head
Tc in(0F):
90
Th in(0F):
608
Tc out(0F):
120
Th out(0F):
140
Area(ft2):
2,344
Tlm:
Pressure(Psia): 102
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
192.25
In (lbs/hr)
S-100
120.1
0
428.3
14.6
29691.8
12711.5
Out (lbs/hr)
S-128
120.1
0
428.3
14.6
29691.8
12711.5
Shell Mat: Carbon Steel

Tube ID (in): .76
Tube OD (in): 1
At (ft2): 3.8
Cost of Purchase:
Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:

Tube Length (ft): 20
N Tubes: 583
Number of Passes 1
$61,154.34
3.3
$201,809.32
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$268,891.76
A4.5.3
55
Heat Exchanger H-102

Type: Shell And Tube/Fixed head
Heat Duty(Btu/hr): 476,300
Tc in(0F):
90
Th in(0F):
281
Tc out(0F):
120
Th out(0F):
249
Area(ft2):
59.5
Tlm:
Pressure(Psia): 135
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
106.13
In (lbs/hr)
S-121
111.4
0
358.7
1.6
28928.9
2938.5
Out (lbs/hr)
S-123
111.4
0
358.7
1.6
28928.9
2938.5
Shell Mat : Carbon Steel

Tube ID (in): 1.4
Tube OD (in): 1.5
At (ft2): 7.33
Cost of Purchase:
Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:

Tube Length (ft): 20
N Tubes: 237
Number of Passes: 1
$21,013.22
3.3
$69,343.62
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$92,393.78
A4.5.3
56
Flash Vessel F-101

Volumetric Flow Rate (ft3/hr): 33,526.5
Diameter (ft): 15.27
Length (ft): 30.53
Thickness (in): 0.5
Stream:
Stage in/out
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
Vessel Cost:
Out (lbs/hr)
In (lbs/hr)
S-118
S-119 S-120
In
Liq
Vap
120.1
111.4
8.7
0
0
0
428.3
358.7
69.6
14.6
1.6
13.0
29691.8 28928.9 762.9
1277.5
2938.5 9772.9
$20,634.10
$90,022.51
Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
3.05
$ 274,568.65
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$ 365,836.65
A4.7
57
ST-100
Type: Spherical Holding Tank
Storage Length: 1 Week
Volume Need (Gal): 1,062,661
Material: Carbon Steel
Volume Made (Gal): 1,275,193
Pressure (Psia): Under 30
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
Out (lbs/hr)
S-100
41621.8
0
0
0
0
0
Cost of Purchase Tank:

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$1,169,803
3.05
$ 3,567,898
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$ 4,753,886
A4.2.1
58
ST-101
Type: Spherical Holding Tank
Storage Length: 1 Day
Volume Need (Gal): 168,599
Material: Carbon Steel
Volume Made (Gal): 202,318
Pressure (Psia): 300
Stream:
Acetone
Hydrogen
Isopropanol
1-NitroPropane
Propylene
Water
In (lbs/hr)
S-125
0.2
0
0
0
26973.6
0
Cost of Purchase Tank:

Fbm:
Cost Bare Module:
$509,225
3.05
$ 1,553,136
Indexed CBM:
Costing Method:
$ 2,069,407
A4.2.2
59
G) Financial Analysis
Breakdown of Financial Analysis:
The financial analysis of this project is broken down into four subsections: capital
investment, fixed costs, variable costs and revenues. Capital investment includes the
costs of purchasing and installation of equipment for the plant as well as working capital
for the operation of our plant. Fixed costs include the costs of plant operation and
maintenance. Variable costs include the costs of purchasing raw materials, utilities and
costs of sales through business administration. Revenues are composed primarily of the
sale of propylene with a second revenue stream from the sale of impure side streams at
fuel values. By combining these four factors, it is possible to derive the free cash flows.
Using free cash flows over
twenty years and the basic
principles of finance we are
able to find whether our
Year
2009
2010
Investment
Variable
Costs
Earnings
($26.7)
($37.3)
($2.4)
($28.5)
$11.6
$63.7
($3.6)
($42.7)
$17.4
2013
$94.3
($5.3)
($63.3)
$25.8
$94.3
($5.3)
($63.3)
$36.4
2030
$10.7
$42.4
2012
2011
viable and if it is, how
Fixed
Costs
($26.7)
($37.3)
process is economically
Revenues
Table G1) Investment, revenues, fixed costs, variable

costs and total earnings for the process are shown. All
values are in million of dollars.
profitable and under what

circumstances.
Capital Investment:
Bare Module Costs: The total bare module costs for our plant are $25,152,000. A
complete breakdown of the costs of each of the process units can be seen in the appendix
and unit specification sheets. A graphical representation of the costs can be seen in
60
Figure G1. It can be seen that the costs are relatively evenly distributed between the
different process units; however, distillation columns and holding tanks take up the lions
share of the capital investment costs. The methods by which bare module costs were
calculated can also be seen in the Equipment Costs section of the report.
7%
1%
30%
Distillation Columns
Pumps
27%
Compressors
Reactors
Holding Tanks
1%
Heaters & Heat Exchangers

Horizontal Pres. Vessel
19%
15%
Figure G1) The units of this process take up different shares in

the total cost of equipment. It is worth noting that distillation
columns and holding tanks are the majority of the total cost.
Total Permanent Investment: Total permanent investment was calculated from bare
module cost through several steps. First, the total direct permanent investment was
calculated. Direct permanent investment was calculated by summing bare module cost,
site preparation costs (assumed to be 15% of bare module costs) service facilities cost
(5% of bare module costs) and allocated costs (6% of bare module costs). The direct
permanent investment was calculated to be $31,691,000. This was then augmented by
18% to account for contingency and contractors costs, which then provides the total
61
depreciable capital cost of $37,395,000. The cost of land (2%), royalties (2%) and
startup (10%) is then applied to arrive at a total permanent investment of $42,631,000.
Total Bare Module Cost:
($25,151,530.04)
Cost Site (15%)
($3,772,729.51)
Cost Service (5%)
($1,257,576.50)
Allocated Costs (6%)
($1,509,091.80)
Total Direct Permanent Investment:
Cost of contingencies (18%)
Total Depreciable Capital:
($31,690,927.85)
($5,704,367.01)
Cost of land (2%)
Cost of royalties (2%)
Cost of plant startup (10%)
($37,395,294.86)
($747,905.90)
($747,905.90)
($3,739,529.49)
Total Permanent Investment:
($42,630,636.14)
Table G2) A visual representation of how Total Permanent Investment is calculated

from the Total Bare Module Cost is shown.
Working Capital: Working capital was calculated by incorporating inventories,
accounts payable, accounts receivable and cash reserves on hand.
Inventories were presumed to be at one week for acetone and 1-nitropropane.
Inventory for hydrogen was not considered since it will be produced on site at another
part of the plant and it will be delivered by pipeline. One day of final propylene product
was assumed as the plant will be located on the Gulf Coast and the product will be sold
via pipeline to polypropylene plants. Inventory was calculated to be $1,158,000.
Accounts payable were assumed to be
Delay/Supply Working
(days)
Capital
30 days and were applied to everything

bought on credit, which includes raw
Accounts
Payable
30
materials. This results in a savings to
Accounts
Receivable
30 ($86.04)
working capital of $4,344,000.
Inventory
Acetone
Accounts receivable were

assumed to be 30 days and were applied
to all products that are sold. This was
Inventory 1Nitropropane
Inventory
Propylene
Cash Reserves
$43.44
($7.97)
($0.44)
($3.17)
30 ($52.66)
Table G3) All the contributing factors to

Working Capital are seen above. All
values are in hundred thousand dollars.
62
calculated to be $8,604,000. Cash reserves were assumed to be 30 days and included

utilities, raw materials and all fixed costs. This was calculated to be $5,266,000.
The total working capital was calculated to be $10,683,000. An excel spreadsheet
explaining these calculations in more detail can be seen in A3.
Total Capital Investment: The total capital investment was calculated by summing
working capital and total permanent investment. It was calculated to be $53,314,000. An
excel spreadsheet showing these results in further detail can be seen in A3.
Fixed Costs:
Operation: For the operational calculations, it was assumed that four operators per shift
working eight hours shifts would be required. Four operators were chosen by realizing
that at least two operators would be required for each reactor because of the very high
flow rates present. Wages, salaries, benefits and technical assistance and the presence of
a control laboratory were included in the costs of operations. The operations cost is
$1,585,000 per year.
Maintenance: In the calculation of maintenance costs, it was presumed that because this
was a fluid process, the wages and benefits would be approximately 3.5% of the total
depreciable capital. Benefits, materials, services and maintenance overhead at prevailing
industry conventions were then added to obtain a total maintenance cost of $3,010,000
per year.
63
Operating Overhead: Operating overhead includes general plant overhead, the

mechanical, employee relations and business services departments and the property taxes
and insurance of the plant. Prevailing industry conventions were used in this calculation.
The total operating overhead was found to be $1,263,000 per year.
Total Fixed Costs: The fixed costs of the plant amount to $5,410,000 per year, which is
only 7.6% of the total costs. An excel spreadsheet showing these results in further detail
can be seen in A3.
Variable Costs:
Raw Materials: The plant utilizes several raw materials. Acetone and hydrogen are
utilized as base reactants. 1-nitropropane is also used as an azeotrope cracking agent. The
costs also include the price of transporting the acetone from the Corn Belt to the Gulf
Coast by combination of rail and truck. Raw materials were valued at prevailing market
prices with the exception of acetone
which was assumed to be purchased at
fuel value. It is worth noting that acetone
and the cost to transport it to our plant
takes up 71% of our raw material costs
and acetone costs make up 49% of our
Acetone
Transportation
Cost Acetone
Hydrogen
1-Nitropropane
$/lb
$0.11
$/yr
($34,942,333)
$0.01
$1.13
$18.15
($2,625,569)
($13,189,312)
($2,097,615)
Table G4) The prices and total costs

for all raw materials consumed in the
process are shown in the table. Acetone
and the cost to transport it to the plant
take up 71% of our raw material costs.
total annual costs.
64
Utility Costs: Utility costs were

calculated using prevailing market prices
for boiler feed water, high and low
pressure steam, cooling water, natural gas,
and electricity. The largest utility cost is
water treatment because of the large flows
of water with organic solvents that must be
Boiler Feed Water

High Pressure Steam
Low Pressure Steam
Cooling Water
Natural Gas Heaters
Pumps &
Compressors
Water Treatment
$/yr
($38,826.75)
($904,432.44)
($368,386.51)
($117,413.02)
($1,021,253.87)
($347,415.23)
($2,591,869.14)
Table G5) The utilities costs are

broken down by use. Treating effluent
water is the most expensive utility in
our plant.
cleaned before they can be purged. Our

second largest utility cost is natural gas, which is used to preheat and then heat the
contents of R-101. This is because this reaction is very endothermic and so large
amounts of heat must be supplied. Total utilities costs are $5,353,000, which are only
7% of annual costs.
General Expenses: General expenses are calculated as a percentage of total sales. This
category includes the cost of selling product, direct and allocated research, administrative
expenses and management compensation costs. All of these aspects combined make up
11.55% of sales, which for this process is $12,100,000, or 16% of the total costs.
Total Variable Costs: The variable costs of our plant amount to $70,312,000 per year,
which is 92% of our total costs. An excel spreadsheet showing these results in further
detail can be seen in A3.
65
Revenues:
Primary Revenues: The primary revenue of this process occurs from the sale of
propylene, presumably for the manufacture of polypropylene. Our propylene produced
conforms to the standards of polymer grade propylene and therefore can be sold for the
high price of 49 per lb (ICIS). The sale of polymer grade propylene earns $104,000,000
per year.
Secondary Revenues: A secondary revenue stream comes from the sale of impure
hydrogen mixed with waste acetone and isopropanol. It is not economically viable to
purify this stream so it is being sold for its fuel value. Due to the high heat of combustion
of hydrogen, this product sells at 34 per lb. However, as a result of the low flow rate of
this stream, only $114,000 per year is acquired from the sale of this product.
Free Cash Flows:

Discount Rate: Using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), the specific discount
rate is found by valuing the beta of our corporation and using the market premium and
the risk free rate. Currently the beta of most chemical manufacturing companies is
valued at 1.05 (Google Finance). The market premium is measured as 4.8% (Google
Finance) and the risk free rate given recent shake ups in credit markets has fallen to 2.5%
(Google Finance). According to CAPM, the discount rate is calculated to be
approximately 7.5%.
66
Depreciation: The plant is depreciated using Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery

System (MACRS) with a 10 year life. This helps reclaim the investment with the
maximum speed that the IRS allows and creates the largest possible tax shield.
Taxes: Taxes are calculated to be at the standard corporate rate of 37%. Furthermore
depreciation is used as a way to decrease taxable income and therefore to save money in
the long run. A sensitivity analysis was performed to look at the effect of increased
government intervention or greater taxes in the future.
Return on Investment (ROI) and Payback Period (PBP): Both ROI and PBP were
calculated for the process in order to get a quick snapshot of the economic vitality of the
project. Return on investment, which is defined as net earnings divided by total capital
investment, was calculated to be 30%. In addition the payback period, which is defined as
total depreciable capital divided by cash flow, was calculated to be 2.84 years. Both of
these values were calculated using 8% depreciation. A more detailed analysis of ROI and
PBP is seen in Appendix A3
Net Present Value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR): The calculated
discount rate of 7.5% and all the economic factors discussed previously achieve an NPV
of $93,800,000 over 20 years of plant life. The IRR over the same plant life is 21.9%. An
excel spreadsheet showing these results in further detail can be seen in A3.
67
Sensitivity Analysis: Sensitivity analysis was conducted with respect to several different
variables. An analysis on the breakeven points and the overall effect on profitability as
measured through NPV and IRR was also performed.
The first variable that was examined was the price of acetone. This price can
increase up to 53% to $0.162 before the breakeven point was reached. Similarly, the
price of propylene could decrease by 21% to $0.388 before the breakeven point was
reached.
Investigating the costs of utilities, it was found that these costs could increase by
340% before the process is no longer profitable. In addition, capital expenses could
increase by 182% before our NPV becomes negative. Taxes and hydrogen prices were
also examined. It was found that taxes could increase from 37% to 83% or hydrogen
prices could increase by 142% to force the break even point. All of these scenarios are
highly improbable.
Overall, the sensitivity analysis reveals that this process is very profitable and that
only large shocks to the current economic or production situation can make this process
no longer profitable. We were unable to come up with any other major changes to the
economic situation that would cause this process to be unprofitable.
68
Sensitivity Analysis
50%
Acetone Price
40%
Hydrogen Price
Internal Rate of Return
Utilities Cost
30%
Propylene Price
Taxes
20%
10%
0%
-40%
-20%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Percent Change in Variable
Figure G2) The response of IRR to shocks in acetone, propylene, utilities and
hydrogen costs. The response of IRR to an increase in taxes is also shown. It can be
seen that propylene price is the market variable that the process is most vulnerable to.
69
H) Alternative Processes
1) Using Acetone as a Fuel Source: There exists the base case scenario where the
excess acetone from ABE technologies could simply be burned for its fuel value. The
profits made from burning the acetone can be calculated by subtracting the fuel value cost
of acetone from the monetary value of electricity that can be generated:
Annual Revenues:
(2.574*109 moles of acetone/yr )(1785.7 kJ/mol)(0.0002778KWH/kJ)($0.04/KWH)(0.70) = $35,749,700
Annual Costs:
($0.106/ lb acetone)*(329,645,000 lb acetone/yr) = $34,942,400
Annual Profits:
$35,749,700 - $34,942,400 = $807,300
This is a conservative estimate of profits. There would likely be additional costs

involved, such as the cost of the furnace. A 70% efficiency of energy transfer is taken
into account when calculating the electricity produced. Assuming a 7.5% discount rate
and a life of 20 years, the NPV of burning the acetone would be $8,230,012. This is
much less than the NPV of $93,800,000 from converting the acetone to propylene.
2) Convert acetone to aromatic chemicals with HZSM-5: According to an article

from the Journal of the Japan Institute of Energy, a feed of acetone reacts with an HZSM5 catalyst in a continuous flow reactor to form various aromatics. The acetone
conversion is close to 100%. The product formed includes several industrial aromatic
compounds, including benzene (6% of product), toluene (23%), and xylene (17% m+p
xylene and 5% -xylene). When estimating the profitability of this process, the
mentioned aromatics are valued at their corresponding market prices and the rest of the
70
product is assumed to be sold at fuel value. Annual profits of $20,000,000 are estimated
via a rough pricing analysis that only takes into consideration the costs of acetone input
and the revenues from products. This process yields over 8 gaseous products and 14
liquid products, which would make the separation of the aromatics from the various
products expensive. Further analysis may show that this process is still profitable;
however, it is unlikely that an implementation of this process would lead to greater
profits than the chosen acetone-to-propylene process.
3) Acetone to Methyl-Methacrylate, Bisphenol-A or Isopropanol: Methylmethacrylate, bisphenol-A, and isopropanol are more expensive compounds than acetone.
Forming each of these products from acetone are industrial processes that have been
optimized and would be simple to adopt.
Unfortunately, while the prices of these three compounds are greater than that of
propylene, the market sizes are significantly smaller. The global demand for methylmethacrylate was only 2,700,000 metric tons in 2006, with a projected growth of 3-4% a
year until 2009. Bisphenol-A is expected to have a global demand of approximately
4,360,000 metric tons in 2009. Similarly, the global market for isopropanol in 2003 was
2,153,000 metric tons (Isopropanol Market). Since 50 million gallons of acetone are used
in this process, choosing methyl-methacrylate, bisphenol-A, or isopropanol as a primary
product would take up a high percentage of the market share for each of these products
and drive market prices downwards. If the given amount of acetone was much less than
50 million gallons, then converting acetone to methyl-methacrylate or isopropanol might
be a more profitable option.
71
4) Vapor-Phase Aldol Condensation of Acetone: An article by W.T. Reichle in the

Journal of Catalysis examines the nature of the MgO-Al2O3-catalyzed aldol
condensation of acetone to principally mesityl oxide and isophorone. Following a large
number of transient intermediates involved in a series of very rapid, reversible equilibria,
it would be the irreversible formation of isophorone that would drive this condensation
reaction. The potential amounts of mesityl oxide and isophorone produced in this reaction
would be 12,800 and 93,200 metric tons per year, respectively. While mesityl oxide is no
longer produced for sale (due to its toxicity effects) and would have to be converted to
some other chemicals (such as methyl isobutyl ketone and methyl isobutyl carbinol),
isophorones value appears promising and its sale could potentially result in about $140
million of sales profit at current market price. However, quite unfortunately, the market
size of isophorone was only 100,000 tons in 2006, with a mere 5,000 tons that were
demanded in the United States. Producing twenty times the current demand of
isophorone would, without doubt, flood the market and drive the market price down
enormously. However, if the market increases in size in the future, this may potentially
be an extremely profitable project to consider.
72
I) Other Considerations
Start-Up: For the plant start-up, it is important to note that the production of propylene
product will be lower and the amount of inputs acetone and hydrogen will be greater than
the corresponding steady state values.
Since there is no heat integration in described process, and utilities such as steam
are purchased directly, this will not be a concern for start-up.
Environmental Issues: This process displays effective recycling and regeneration of the
various chemicals and catalysts involved. For instance, the acetone and hydrogen after
the first reactor are separated off and recycled. Furthermore, the gamma alumina catalyst
in the second reactor is regenerated every 500 hours. The effort spent on establishing an
efficient recycle and regeneration of the process has both economic and environmental
benefits.
The waste stream (S-126) is about 90% water, 8% propylene, and the remaining is
a mixture of acetone, isopropanol, and trace amounts of 1-nitropropane. This stream can
be taken to a waste-water facility for treatment.
The catalysts used in this process, nickel on silica and gamma alumina, are very
common. These catalysts can be sent to a solid waste disposal.
Plant Layout: The plant is designed to be in the Gulf Coast for easy shipment of
propylene and access to hydrogen. Transporting the acetone alone from the Corn Belt
would be cheaper than having to transport both propylene and hydrogen since it involves
73
only one chemical. The location of the Gulf Coast was also chosen because of a large
amount of already established polypropylene plants in the area. As a result, propylene
could be shipped out via pipeline with little if any transportation costs. Because the
acetone is coming in on railcar, the storage tanks are placed next to the rail station outside
of the battery limits of the plant. The battery limits include the three distillation columns,
reactors, heaters, and flash tanks. D-100 is represented by two pieces of equipment
because it is so big it is broken into two columns.
Electricity
HP Steam
50 psia
HP Steam
150 psia
Boiler Feed
Water
Natural Gas
Cooling
Water
Water
Treatment
S-100
D-100
R-100
D-100
D-101
Hydrogen
Pipeline
H-101
R-101
H-100
H-101
S-101
D-102
F-101
74
J)
Conclusion:
After rigorous optimization, the final results of the process converting acetone to
propylene indicate that this process is both technologically and economically feasible.
Efforts were made to run the various process units at moderate temperatures and
pressures, ensuring that the equipment for this process can be easily designed,
constructed, and maintained. The propylene purity is 99.9996% with less than 1 ppm of
water, which is considered polymer grade in todays market.
The financial analysis of the process indicates that the project should be accepted
due to its positive NPV and the IRR that is greater than 20%. Converting the excess
acetone to propylene is the most profitable option considered, but there may be other
better options depending on the initial amount of acetone available for use. Burning the
acetone was one possible scenario; however, it is clear that burning the acetone is not
more profitable than converting it to propylene.
Sensitivity analysis indicates that if the cost of acetone is greater than $0.162, a
53% increase in acetone cost, then the process is no longer profitable. Similarly, if the
propylene market price is less than $0.388, a 21% decrease, then the plant is operating at
the break even point. An increase in the cost of utilities of 340% would also make this
process infeasible.
There are certain possibilities that were not considered that could considerably
increase the efficiency of the acetone to propylene process. For instance, the first
reaction of acetone to isopropanol occurs at 150C. If this could occur at a higher
temperature, without producing side reactions, then heat integration throughout the
process could be performed. An extremely pure isopropanol feed was desired into the
75
second reactor, R-101, because information on side reactions that could occur was
available if the purity dropped below 99.69%. If the effects of a 2% impurity of acetone
in the reaction were documented, column D-101 could be removed and 1-Nitropropane
would not have to be used in the process. This would remove 2 million dollars in bare
module cost of process units, save $500,000 a year in utilities, and $2,000,000 a year in
1-Nitropropane costs. Another consideration would be the building of a waste water
treatment plant on site. This would remove a significant amount of our cost of cooling
water, as well as could save some of the $2,500,000 a year spent on waste water
treatment.
Our recommendations would be to implement the plant as soon as ABE
technologies are producing excess acetone.
76
K) Acknowledgements:
We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has helped us in the
development of this report. We would like to thank Professor Gorte for starting us off in
the right direction and keeping us on task throughout weeks of distractions. Without his
help and knowledge of the processes and proper catalysts to use, this process could have
never been profitable. Professor Fabiano for his immense help with our Aspen Flow
Sheet and his constant reminders of concepts we had learned a long time ago.
We would also like to thank Mr. Bruce Vrana and the entire DuPont company for
the inspiration for this project. We hope one day our ideas will go beyond this paper and
become implemented in the real world.
Also, thank you to every CBE 2008 student for the four great years of helping
each other design distillation columns, find heat transfer coefficients, and establish a
close sense of community. Without all of you, this would not have been possible.
77
L)
Bibliography:
Seider, Warren., J.D. Seader, and Daniel R. Lewin. Product & Process Design
Principles. 2nd Edition. John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2004.
Incropera, F.P., David P. Dewitt. Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer. John Wiley
& Sons Inc, 2001.
Geankooplis, Christie John. Transport Processes and Separation Process Principles,
Prentice Hall, 2003.
ICIS Chemical Pricing Reports
www.icispricing.com
ICIS Chemicals
www.icis.com
Greiner, Elvira. June 2005.
http://www.sriconsulting.com/CEH/Public/Reports/604.5000/
Teppco
http://www.teppco.com/pdfs/tpp-fung-003.pdf
Isopropanol Market
http://www.dow.com/productsafety/finder/iso.htm
Perry, Robert H. Green, Don W. Perrys Chemical Engineering Handbook. 7th Edition
McGraw Hill Professional, 1997.
Froment, Gilbert F., Bischoff B. Kenneth. Chemical Reactor Analysis and Design.
John Wiley and Sons, 1979.
Acetone to BPA
http://www.wipo.int/pctdb/en/wo.jsp?WO=2005%2F026235&IA=WO2005%2F026235
&DISPLAY=DESC
Setiadi, Suprapto. Kojima, Toshinori. Conversion of Acetone to aromatic chemicals
with HZSM-5. May, 2003.
Chemical Engineering Beta
www.che.com
Google Finance
finance.google.com
78
Cost of Acetone
(50,000,000 gal acetone)*(3785.41cm^3/gal)*(0.79g/cm^3)*(1mol/58.08g)= 2.574*10^9
moles of acetone
Delta H of combustion = -1785.7 kJ/mol
(2.574*10^9 mol)*(-1785.7 kJ/mol) = -4.59*10^12 kJ
Cost of Acetone = ($8 / 1000000 BTU) = ($8 / 1055060 kJ)
Yearly Cost of Acetone = (-4.59*10^12 kJ)* ($8 / 1055060 kJ) = $34,858,200
(50,000,000 gal acetone)*(3785.41cm^3/gal)*(0.79g/cm^3)*(1 lb / 453.59 g) =
329,645,000 lb acetone
($34,858,200)/(329,645,000 lb) = $0.105745/lb
79

Uses For Acetone

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April 15th, 2008

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Acetone Overview: Acetone (C3H6O), also known as 2-Propanone, is a colorless and

Propylene Overview: Propylene (C3H6), also known as propene, is a colorless and

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

paints, coatings, and other adhesive applications. Acrylonitrile is used in variety of

Methods of Production: An effective way to convert acetone into propylene is to first

According to the patent, isopropanol is prepared through catalytic hydrogenation of

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Competitive Landscape: The global demand of acetone is projected to be 6,230,000

As mentioned before, acetone is used primarily to form methyl methacrylate.

The global demand of propylene is predicted to reach

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

New Product Design Use for Acetone

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Technology Readiness Assessment:

New product design Use for Acetone

Plant cost and

Products made from

New Cheap Supply

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

C) Process Description Flow Diagram and Material Balances:

(See Attached Excel/Visio)

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Reaction of Acetone and Hydrogen to form Isopropanol

Reaction of Isopropanol to form Propylene and Isolation

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

0 734.803062 2206.26804 1492.87923 1471.21611 21.6631157

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Section 1: Reaction of Acetone and Hydrogen to form Isopropanol and Isolation of

The purpose of this section is to hydrogenate acetone to form isopropanol (See

CH3COCH3 (l) + H2 (g) C3H8O (l)

Catalyst: Nickel on Silica Support (Reaction 1)

The reactor is designed as a multi-tubular reactor as specified in the United States

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Acetone to Isopropanol with Separations

Senior Design, Uses for Acetone

Behrend, Mahoney, Makarukha, Subramanian

Section 2: Reaction of Isopropanol to form Propylene and Separation and Isolation